Rain
by tilldeathfindsme
Summary: The Mercers receive another new arrival shortly after Jack. This strange girl has more secrets & a darker past than anyone is willing to imagine Even Mrs. Mercer might lose heart on this kid. M lang mostly
1. Chapter 1

Rain

This is a short one, but it's just the beginning

Chapter 1

Closet Noise

_I thought today was going to be a good day._

"OPEN THE DOOR! I KNOW YOU'RE IN THERE!"

_It rained; I like it when it rains._

"DON'T MAKE ME BREAK THIS DOOR DOWN! BECAUSE I WILL!"

_I spent an hour sitting at the window tracing the raindrops' intricate patterns on the glass. _

"THINK YOU CAN HIDE FROM ME? THINK I CAN'T GET YOU? I'M NOT STUPID! YOU HEAR ME? I KNOW YOU CAN, GIRL!"

_The streetlight outside had cast a pale glow into the otherwise dark house. It made the water paths sparkle. If I hadn't spent so much time watching the rain, I probably could have gotten away. _

The frequency of the pounding fists on the door increased until it became an extended, single crashing, like the thunder outside.

_I was busy considering whether I should go watch the lightening from the porch as the rain picked up. I should have been watching the clock more closely._

"FUCK, CHANDLER!" The door shook as a heavy boot kicked at it from the other side. "DAMMIT! WHY DO YOU MAKE ME DO THIS HUH?"

_It's Thursday. He always get off early on Thursdays and goes straight to the bar. Dammit, this was stupid._

The brass hinges rattled with the next smash.

_The hall closet probably wasn't the best place to hide._

As the heavy footsteps forcefully marched down the hallway, the teenage girl leaned back into a large pile of jackets that hadn't seen the light of day in decades.

Closing her eyes, she tried to breathe and remain calm until a sudden thought struck her. She slid over toward the closet door and used the dim light shining under it to check the time on her watch.

_9 o'clock…. Shit. Chris and Ashley are going to be here soon._

Suddenly, the thumping of boot-clad feet once again emerged from the darkness.

BOOM

BOOM

BOOM

BOOM

The sound grew louder and louder, closer and closer until it became all encompassing. It descended from the ceiling; it vibrated out of the walls and oozed from the cracks around the door.

Unconsciously, the girl gripped a nearby umbrella and began to gradually tighten her grip around it as the sounds filled her mind, blocking out anything else.

She barely heard the closet door break down. Only a single thought passed through her mind as she was dragged up from the floor.

_Should have known better._


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**At the Station**

"Who we got now? New girl? "

"Nope. Chandler."

"Chandler? Which-"

"Chandler Chandler."

"No."

"Yes."

Detective Clapper tossed his clipboard onto his cluttered desk and glanced across the room to where various people waited on benches or leaned against the wall. Some were covered head to toe in dirt or filth; others were in tailored suits. These people all shared a single, common characteristic though.

Pain.

Clapper scanned the row of victims and those awaiting others quickly, searching for a familiar face. Having found none, the man turned back to the younger officer who was flipping through a thick manilla folder.

"Well, where is the kid? I haven't seen her around in awhile." The older man chuckled lightly. "Last was when she kneed…who was it, oh right… Stevens in the….-"

Clapper caught the stern look his officer gave him and asked, "What?"

Uncomfortable with the situation, Officer Laney cleared his throat and muttered, "She's real screwed up, sir. She-"

"Of course she's screwed up, kid. Chandler's always been screwed up." Clapper let out a hearty laugh, grabbed his mug, and started walking toward the coffee maker.

Laney grabbed several more folders and rushed after his superior.

Clapper continued, "Don't waste your time feeling bad for these kids, Laney. They all know exactly what they're doing when they screw things up."

John Clapper was a man who made up for his lack of height in pant size. He had thinning dark hair, a graying mustache, and watery brown eyes. He'd been on the force for over 20 years and was within a year of retirement.

"But sir-"

"But what, Laney?" Clapper watched lukewarm coffee swish into his '#1 DAD' mug. "Chandler's been in and out of the system for years. Same story over and over again. Kid gets set up in a home, kid pisses off family, family kicks kid out, and finally kid ends up on the streets where we of course have to pick them up. Social gets called, rinse and repeat. Simple as that."

Laney sighed as Clapper went on, walking back to his desk.

Officer Laney was in his early twenties and fresh out of the academy. He couldn't always understand his superior's constant pessimism but generally kept his mouth shut.

"Sure, it's not easy growing up in a foster home, but the least she could do is try. So, where is she and did you call social yet?"

Glad for finally having an opportunity to speak, Laney quickly replied, "Social's been here for an hour and she's in 1."

Clapper spit his coffee out. "Are you insane, Laney? An hour? Social has been in my building for an hour? Why the hell are they still here? And what the hell is a fuck up like Chandler sitting anywhere but out here for?"

"They don't have room at central, so she had to be placed immediately. They've been calling around for awhile, but eventually they decided to call-"

Angry now, "Why is Chandler, of all people, in my interrogation room? Is she being interrogated?"

"No, sir, but-"

"But nothing! Why-"

Just then the two men were interrupted when a very stern looking woman carrying a large binder approached. She stopped directly in front of the detective and nodded curtly. "Clapper."

Detective Clapper cleared his throat loudly. "Ah, Ms. Collins, my favorite social. Good to see you again ma'am."

"I wish that I could say the same."

Ms. Collins was a woman in her late twenties with dark blonde hair that she always wore up in a tight bun, not a hair out of place. She had cold, light blue eyes behind rectangular black frames and a tan complexion. She was a no-nonsense kind of person and everyone on the force knew it.

Switching her gaze to Officer Laney, she explained. "We were finally able to make contact. Mrs. Mercer will be arriving shortly."

"Mercer?" The detective stared at the stiff woman before him, in complete shock. "You pushed Chandler off on Mercer? She's got enough on her plate without that whack-job to worry about!"

Ms. Collins threw her most vehement glare at the portly man. "Detective! I did not push her off onto Mrs. Mercer; she offered. This woman has proved over and over again to be the most reliable caretaker in these types of …. difficult situations. I'm sure you recall a certain Bobby-"

"This is completely ridiculous. Didn't you just send her that other kid? I say all this one needs is-"

"I don't really see how any of this is any concern of yours, detective," a calm voice said from behind the group.

Clapper started at the interruption and gripped the side of his desk as he met the commanding gaze of a seemingly kind older woman.

"Mrs. Mercer, I didn't hear you come in!"

"So I see."

Mrs. Mercer was not the imposing figure of justice that Ms. Collins took the form of at first glance. She had silvery, white hair with blonde scattered throughout and normally kind blue eyes.

Detective Clapper had quarreled with Mrs. Mercer over countless incidents involving her foster kids through the years. She had been social's go-to person for hopeless cases for years and had placed the majority of them. The Mercer residence was an anomaly in the system to Clapper. He had no idea how so many punks were toned down by this kind-hearted woman.

"So, who is this girl?"

Clapper sighed loudly and Laney began to read from the file he was holding.

"Arlyn Chandler, 16 years old. Originally from New York, but was sent here to live with relatives at 10. Shortly after, she was put into the system and has been in and out of countless homes and shelters ever since. "

He flipped through multiple pages in the file. "Picked up for drug charges, school fights, and as a runaway multiple times each. She-"

"She's a misfit Mrs. Mercer!" Clapper finally exploded. "A hooligan, a trouble-maker. Whatever you want to call it! She doesn't play well with others. The girl doesn't want help. She doesn't need hugs and kisses; if you ask me-"

"Which I wasn't."

"If you ask me, what she really needs is a good kick in the ass. This kid is not one you can change, Mrs. Mercer."

With a huff, Mrs. Mercer slammed her purse onto Clapper's desk. "Well, this sounds familiar. It's no wonder-"

With a glance at the time Collins interrupted with, "Do we really need to repeat this? Ms. Chandler will be residing in the Mercer home until further notice-"

"Because that's gone so well so far."

The blonde glared down at the officer at a nearby desk. He simply sighed and went back to his paperwork,

"She will be residing at the Mercer home, and as Mrs. Mercer has said, it is not your decision, Detective. So, moving on, I'll go-"

Trying to get in another word, Clapper slammed his hand against his desk, "And that's another thing! Why is Chandler in 1? You could be holding up more important-"

"Could you stop talking for one minute! And, it's a graveyard tonight." Mrs. Mercer smiled at Collins' outburst.

More quietly, "Have you even looked in on Chandler, John?"

"No, he hasn't," Laney piped in.

"Quiet, Laney!"

"She was moved into 1 at the request of several officers and civilians. I told you she was real screwed up, sir."

Pulling her aside, the social worker told Mrs. Mercer quietly, "I'll go get her, so we can all go home."

With clicking heels marking her path, Collins headed down a side hallway that lead to interrogation rooms to retrieve the girl who had caused such an uproar among her colleagues in the past six years. Personally she was beginning to believe Clapper might be right, even if she was completely unwilling to admit it. The case had certainly given her a migraine anyway.

When the two emerged, they were greeted almost immediately with silence at the surrounding desks. The only sounds came from the front where officers were coming in from their shifts.

Laney, like many surrounding him, was careful to look down at the paperwork in his hands while Clapper stared straight out at the teenager who trailed behind Collins. His interruptions were silenced at last.

Mrs. Mercer looked sympathetic.

Arlyn Chandler was a small girl at 5'3'' or so. She wore too-large black cargo pants over black boots. Her dark gray t-shirt had something in Spanish written on it, and her knee-length black jacket was worn and faded. Long, messy black hair covered her downcast face.

Mrs. Mercer stepped forward to greet her new charge but was surprised when the girl picked up pace and, still looking down, stopped directly in front of Clapper.

After a moment she jerked her head sharply up and stared the startled man straight in the eye. "Miss me?"

At her close proximity, he quickly took one step backwards and looked disturbed down at her face.

She lightly took a step back her self and in a sarcastic tone said, "Oh, aren't you gonna give me a good kick in the ass?"

Momentarily horrified, Clapper glanced over at Collins who tiredly shrugged.

Cocking her head to the side Arlyn said, "You talk loud."

With that she turned to face the two women.

As she gave Mrs. Mercer a quick up-and-down, the older woman was startled by her quick eye contact. Expecting to meet worn, tired eyes, she was met with piercing, dark blue ones.

She expertly hid her immediate reaction to the large bruises forming on the girl's cheek and neck. There was also a small red slash, glaringly apparent against her pale skin.

Ms. Collins looked sternly down at her. "Arlyn, this is Mrs. Mercer; you're to go-"

"Where are they?"

"Excuse me?" Though annoyed at the interruption, the tired social worker was only met with a questioning glare. "I take it you mean Christopher and Ashley?"

Only a nod in response.

Raising an eyebrow, mildly surprised at the question she said, "Ashley was taken down to central right away, and Christopher is at St. Paul's. Dislocated shoulder."

Arlyn, who had been looking around the area, suddenly snapped back to Collins with a shocked look. "Why didn't you-?"

"They _wanted _Ashley at central, and Christopher nearly passed out. We needed to move things along as quickly as possible." Collins recited without much concern.

Arlyn looked furiously at the woman for a moment, causing Laney to stand, afraid she would strike the social worker.

Thoroughly shocked by this strange teen, Mrs. Mercer watched as she slowly adopted a blank expression. Her dark head bent down again as she reached behind Clapper's desk to grab a dull green messenger bag. After swinging it over her shoulders, completely disregarding Collins now, she turned to Mrs. Mercer and dully asked, "Can we leave now?"

After studying Arlyn's face quickly, searching for and finding no sign of emotion in her dark blue eyes, she nodded. The girl took off toward the glass entrance, and Mrs. Mercer nodded to the startled social worker and uncomfortable policemen before following after her.

With one last glance at the retreating form of the two women, Detective Clapper loudly announced, "She'll be back in three months."

A passing officer called out, "I've got twenty that says two."

A chuckle passed through the men as business went back to usual.

This time, Collins only rolled her eyes and grabbed her things, leaving for home.

**a/n: that's it for now. Thanks for reading and please review.**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

There's A Girl In My Room

The slam of the car door echoed down the deserted street.

The muted morning light was just making its presence known as Bobby Mercer made his way up the familiar front steps, his shoes crunching on the icy cement. He exhaled slowly, his breath visible in the morning chill, and rubbed a gloved hand along the chipped, white painted door. In the distance there was the faint chirping of birds.

Bobby lightly muttered, "Home sweet home."

"You can say that again, brother."

Bobby spun around to find his brother, Jeremiah Mercer, hopping up the steps behind him. Jeremiahhad beenthe second Mercer to move out of the nest and by far the most successful and well-adjusted. He was frequently called a "rising star" in the Union with his troubled past far behind him and hisreputationas the most reasonable Mercer.

Bobby, the oldest, had been the first to step out into the world, so to speak. When he wasn't getting into some kind of trouble, he usually worked as a mechanic at a friend's shop downtown, but he frequently disappeared as well. As time went on, Bobby seemed to grow harder and harder to reach, but he always showed up back at home eventually. After all, he wasn't going to abandon the only family he'd ever known.

"I didn't know you were in town, jackass." Jerry rubbed his hand together, blowing on them. "Here for long?"

"I'm down at Jimmy's for a few weeks. No time for car wrecks like Christmas."

The two men embraced quickly before entering the screened-in porch together. They shook the snow off of their feet and hung their coats beside the screen door.

"You know why Mom called, Jer?"

"No, man, I was gonna ask you. I was just up here on Monday and everything was fine. She made it sound like something important though."

Bobby chuckled. "Hey, maybe that fairy started talkin."

"Hey, I'd watch it with that shit now, Bobby. Mom seems to be taking a liking to this kid lately. On Monday I even saw the two watching Letterman together. Besides, Jack ain't that bad; he's just not used to shit."

Bobby shrugged and threw his hat onto a nearby chair. "Alright, man. Whatever."

The two walked into the main house and Bobby yelled out, "Hey, Mom, we're home!"

When they were greeted only by silence, Jeremiah yelled out, "Ma, you here?"

Some shuffling around could be heard upstairs, so Bobby pointed upwards.

Jeremiah nodded and said, "I'll go have a look in the kitchen."

Bobby took the stairs two at a time and wandered down the hallway. Not seeing anyone, he turned and headed for his old room. One of the luxuries of coming back home was getting his own room back. Technically it had been Bobby and Jeremiah's room, but since Bobby actually slept over occasionally, it was really his now.

He turned the doorknob and took a few steps into the room, but immediately froze upon seeing that he was not alone.

Standing over by his window, an unfamiliar girl was fishing through some kind of messenger bag. She had her back to him, but he could tell that she wasn't very tall. She was thin, almost too thin and had long, dark, wet hair that hung down her back. She was wearing dark, oversized clothes. He'd never seen her before in his life, as far as he could tell.

She hadn't seemed to notice him until he unintentionally muttered, "What the-"

She quickly dropped the bag and turned to face Bobby, but he spun around, back into the hall and slammed the door shut behind him. As he leaned against the door for a minute, Jeremiah appeared at the top of the stairs.

"Mom's not downstairs; neither is-" He looked at his brother oddly. "What is wrong with you? You look like someone's gone an-"

"There's a girl in my room."

"Is this supposed to shock me?"

Bobby smirked. "Huh, Funny. I'm serious though, man. There's some chick I don't know in my room."

Jeremiah grinned. "Do you ever know them?"

Bobby smacked his brother on the side of the head with, "Shut up, Jerry."

"Ok, first, don't hit me." Jeremiah shoved Bobby lightly into the wall. "Second, I don't know who's in your room. And third, where's Jack?"

"Why?"

"Maybe someone who actually lives here will have some idea of where Mom is why there's a girl in your room."

Bobby shrugged and yelled, "HEY, FA-" Jeremiah elbowed his brother in the stomach.

"JACK?"

The bathroom door down the hall opened to reveal a tall, skinny teenage boy pulling a black tee over his head. He wore black boxers and his longish, light brown hair was damp from a shower, sticking out in all directions. He frowned when he saw Bobby and Jeremiah blocking the hallway.

"Why are you here?" Jack muttered in a low voice. He reached back in the bathroom to grab a comb and started towards the room he shared with the third Mercer brother, which was unfortunately behind the two grown men.

"Mom called us-" Jeremiah was interrupted by Bobby.

"Wait, wait, wait." Bobby waved his hands in the air for a minute and gestured towards his room. "Did you bring a… girl over here?"

"What?" Jack tried to shove his way past Jeremiah, but the bigger man grabbed his arm.

"You brought a GIRL to the house to… Couldn't find a better place t-"

Jack flinched when Jeremiah tightened his grip; he snatched it out and took a few steps back before answering. "I don't know what you're talking about, man."

Bobby pointed at his door. "I'm TALKING about the teenage girl currently in MY room."

Jack face furrowed with confusion momentarily. "What? … Oh, you mean Arlyn?"

"Hah! See, he admits it!"

"I did not!"

"Hey, at least he knows her name…" Jeremiah chuckled.

"Of course I know her name. She's-"

"Just admit it, Jackie-boy. You're having se-"

A bedroom door behind Bobby and Jeremiah flew open, and a tall, nineteen-year-old poked his head out. "Who's having sex?"

"Hey, Angel." Jeremiah hugged his little brother while Bobby just crossed his arms across his chest and studied Jack intently, causing the boy to squirm and run his hand through his hair.

Jack Welsh was seventeen years old and had just been placed in the Mercer house a few weeks earlier. He didn't ever seem particularly interested in fitting in. He mostly didn't talk unless spoken to. In fact, so far had been the longest conversation Bobby had ever had with the kid. He figured Jack must've come out of something real fucked up with the way he flinched every time someone looked at him for too long or bumped into him. Then again, that had to be the case since he'd been sent here. None of them were saints by any means.

"So, who's having sex?" Angel looked questioningly around as if to catch someone in the act.

"Jack's having sex," Bobby kept looking back and forth between Jack and his door.

"Really?" Angel opened the door all the way and stepped out into the hall, grinning. "Little Jackie's having sex?"

"In my room."

"Jack's having sex in your room!"

"I'M NOT HAVING SEX!"

Jeremiah quirked an eyebrow and Angel snickered. Bobby sighed and said, "Oh, right you're a fairy. Sorry, I forgot."

Jack sighed, exasperated and kicked the wall. "With HER! I'm not having sex WITH HER!"

Bobby adopted a high pitched voice, "So, who's the lucky guy?"

"I AM NOT GAY!"

Angel leaned over and whispered, laughing, "They prefer homosexual."

Jack kicked the wall and again and turned away from the laughing brothers. "Fuck it."

Stopping Jack's march back to the bathroom, Jerry called out, "Hey, hold on, kid. He's just messin with you. Come on, where's Mom?"

Jack turned to face them again and glared at Bobby who was still smirking. "Mrs. Mercer went to the store."

"So, who's the girl, and why are we here?"

"Arlyn?"

"No, Mother Teresa. Yes, fairy, the girl in my room."

"Jerk-off."

"No thank you, FAI-RY."

Jack lunged forward, but Jeremiah reached out and grabbed his arm again. "Bobby, shut the fuck up. Jack, talk."

Still glaring, Jack mumbled, "Mrs. Mercer picked her up last night. I guess she called you about that."

"Wait-" Angel interrupted. "Mom called you two to tell you Jack was having sex?"

Bobby smacked Angel. "What the hell are you on?"

"No," Jack continued. "She lives here now. Social called your mom last night to pick her up."

"Oh, that." Angel turned back to his room.

"Wait, you knew that?" Jeremiah sent a look of amazement at his brother's stupidity.

"Course I did. Haven't seen her though." With that he slammed the door shut.

"So, you know her?" Jeremiah turned back to Jack.

The teen looked down and mumbled, "Who doesn't…"

"I don't." Bobby raised his hand in the air.

Jerry rolled his eyes. From downstairs, the sound of the front door slamming shut could be heard.

Jack looked up and said, "Just go ask her yourself," and he stalked back into the bathroom, slamming the door.

"I'm confused." Bobby shook his.

"You're always confused."

"Shut up, Jerry."

_Wow, boys are stupid. _Arlyn almost chuckled at the loud banter fading down the hall. Almost.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

-Breakfast-

"You know Ma, you could've just told us that you picked up a new kid over the phone." Bobby grabbed a carton of orange juice out of the fridge and placed it on the long wooden table before flopping into a seat.

Bobby and Jeremiah had descended the stairs to greet their mother at the door. After helping her dump her shopping bags in the kitchen and being enveloped in multiple bear hugs, the boys had helped her set breakfast on the table.

"Yeah, Mom," Jeremiah continued as he lowered himself in to his own place at the table. "We know you take in new kids all the time. We meet them all eventually, and it's not like you're adopting anyone."

Evelyn Mercer turned away from her two sons at the mention of adoption to flip her pancakes. With so much to worry about already, she had no intention of sharing her recent thoughts concerning a certain teenager upstairs.

"Well, I'm sorry to interrupt your busy schedules." Evelyn carried a large bowl of scrambled eggs over to the table with a playful smile on her face. "I'm just sad to see that my boys are to busy to come see their mother." Shesent a pointed glance at Bobby with her last comment.

"Oh, come on now, Ma." Bobby reached out to grab Evelyn's hand. "Don't get on a guilt trip. You know me; I show up eventually."

She smiled down at this young man she'd so grown to love over the years. From the first moment she'd laid eyes on him, she'd known he'd be trouble, but it'd all been worth it.

"Yes, I know, Bobby. And Jeremiah, if you so much as look at that bacon again I'll beat you with it."

Jerry grinned and retracted his hand from the nearby platter. "Sorry, Mom."

Evelyn retreated back to the stove to retrieve the golden brown pancakes, which she quickly placed on the table in front of the boys. After grabbing a stack of napkins, she finally sank down across from her sons. She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples lightly before shaking her head slowly.

"What's wrong?" Jerry watched as his mother tiredly looked up at them.

"This about the girl in my room?"

Evelyn smiled and said, "Well, I could hardly put her in with Angel and Jack, now could I?"

Bobby shrugged and slouched down in his chair. "So, what's up with her? You look exhausted."

Evelyn sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "I think I'm going to need some help with this one."

Bobby and Jeremiah exchanged a quick glance.

Still looking up as though she could see through the ceiling to where the new resident stood, she quietly continued, "I've never seen anyone quite like her. Ms. Collins called after midnight, practically begging me to take her. When I went down to the station, Clapper practically had a hernia over me agreeing to take her in.

Bobby straightened at the mention of the detective. "Clapper's an ass."

"Bobby!"

"Sorry, Ma, but you know it's true."

Evelyn rolled her eyes. "Well, whatever the case, that wasn't what bothered me. I was expecting _that _at least."

Jerry and Bobby silently urged her on.

"I've seen or heard of all manners of abuse over the yeas, but I can't imagine what happened last night to that poor girl. She was still bleeding when we got to the car, but she didn't even acknowledge any pain. She didn't acknowledge anything at all after we left the station, just stared out window with dead eyes and didn't seem to care where I was taking her.

'When we got inside the house and she took off that jacket," Evelyn gestured to a piece of black fabric draped over an end table, "I could get an even better look at her. By then, her face had turned almost completely black and blue."

Evelyn wrapped her hands around her neck and whispered, "I could see finger marks all around her neck."

Jerry reached out to grab Evelyn's hand and seemed to pull her out of her recollection momentarily, but tears suddenly appeared in her eyes.

"And, my God, her arms. The worst part was that she didn't seem to care at all, like she couldn't feel anything at all. I mean, Jack was stand-offish when he came, but at least he seemed… alive." Evelyn, shaking now, closed her eyes and regained some composure before moving on.

"She didn't mind me looking at her wounds, but when I moved to clean her up, she nearly jumped out of her skin. Then, she just asked me to show her where the bathroom was and where she'd sleep, which I did. Locked herself in the bathroom then for near two hours.

"I didn't get a wink last night; I just stayed up listening to her move around up there, too shocked to go check on her. When she finally did come out of the bathroom, I think she ran into Jack up there. I kind of heard them muttering something to each other, but after that, nothing."

Evelyn shook her head again and walked over to wipe her face on a dish rag.

Bobby, sitting with his arms crossed, looked over to the stairs. "I didn't get a good look at her, but Jack did seem to know her up there, well her name anyway. Ally or Amy-"

"Arlyn," Evelyn walked back to the table and leaned down to hug her two eldest sons. "Arlyn Chandler."

The sound of footsteps upstairs broke the silence. Mrs. Mercer straightened and walked over to the foot of the stairs and yelled up, "BREAKFAST!"

Almost immediately, Angel came bounding down the stairs, stopping only to say good morning to his mother. He flew to his seat at the table and reached for the bacon, but Jerry reached across the table and smacked it out of his hands. "You wait till we're all here, pig."

Angel frowned, but crossed his arms and glared in the direction of the stairs, where after a few minutes Jack slowly trudged into view.

"Hurry up, white boy!"

"Angel!" Evelyn frowned in his direction and reached out to ruffle Jack's still damp hair. He didn't even shrink back this time. _Progress_, she thought.

When all five were seated at the table, they briefly connected hands and prayed quickly. The boys all dug in quickly, grabbing whatever was closest, but Evelyn only watched them and then looked back at the stairs.

"She's not coming down." Everyone at the table turned to look at Jack, who rarely spoke at breakfast while he took advantage of the pile of pancakes in front of him.

Evelyn, who turned back to look at the stairs, asked, "What, Jack?"

Without looking up, Jack mumbled, "She went back in the bathroom when I got out. Said she wasn't hungry."

Angel and Jeremiah just shrugged and went back to eating. Evelyn sighed and spooned some eggs on her plate.

Bobby, now, looked towards the staircase and thought _Well, this shit's gonna be interesting._


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

**To Be Unwanted**

"Ok, what the hell is she doing up there?" Bobby tossed his fork onto his plate and gestured towards the stairs.

"Bobby, don't-"

"I know, I know. Sorry, Ma, but the silence is just getting to me. No one is that quiet!"

"Arlyn is." Jack didn't look up from his food, like usual.

"Oh really? Well, Jackie what is the kid doing? Hibernating?"

Evelyn looked at Jack curiously. Even Angel took a break from shoveling food down his throat to hear the answer. Jack took a swig of orange juice before answering. He picked up his empty plate and headed towards the kitchen. "She's waiting."

"Waiting?" Jerry glanced at his mother who only shrugged. "What for? Jack! What is sh-"

Just then, the girl in question suddenly appeared in the entryway. Angel glanced up and nearly jumped out of his seat. She hadn't made a sound coming down the stairs. She eyed him for a moment before turning her attention to the food on the table. She looked it all over, rather disinterested and completely ignored everyone at the table.

They couldn't ignore her though. All eyes were fixed on her small frame. The same thought crossed both Jerry and Bobby's minds. It was worse that their mother had described.

Bobby hadn't really gotten a good look at her face upstairs. Her presence had been enough of a shock, but this was totally different. She had a giant black eye, and the rest of her face was a tye-dye of gray, purple, and her own pale skin tone. Her lip was busted and her nose looked swollen. There was also a gash running diagonally across her right cheek.

She didn't seem to notice or give a shit that people were gaping at her. Jerry put a hand over his mouth and looked back down at the table, but Bobby's eyes traveled down her body, taking in the rest of the visible damage. Sure enough, there were hand print shaped bruises wrapped around her neck. They were probably the most striking of her injuries. They were black and purple against her skin. She was wearing a simple gray t-shirt, showing that her arms also had a few handprints though they weren't as dark. There were also several scrapes and gashes along her arms. She still wore the baggy cargo pants, but everyone assumed there were bruises there as well.

Evelyn jumped up. "Arlyn! We were wondering when you'd come down." She smiled nervously and walked around the table to the girl. As she reached out to direct her to a seat, Arlyn smoothly slid around the older woman and started walking backwards into the kitchen.

"I don't do breakfast."

Her voice was unusual. It was somewhat low and quiet, but it had a slight lilt to it. It was hard to say where she was from.

Looking a little hurt, Evelyn said, "You really should eat something, dear."

Arlyn stopped and grabbed a green apple from a bowl on a side table. When she faced them again, she slightly held it up and said, "Something." Her gaze then went around the rest of the room until it rested on a painting behind Bobby and Jerry.

Evelyn mistook her actions as waiting for introduction. "Oh, silly me. These are my boys."

Arlyn looked away from the painting with the same bored expression. She did however lean against the wall and acknowledge that Mrs. Mercer was speaking.

She cleared her throat and moved around the table, placing a hand on each of the boys' shoulders in turn. "This is Angel. He lives here with Jack and I. I think you know Jack."

The girl nodded, twirling the apple by it stem in her hands.

"Yes, well, this is Jeremiah.. Jerry." He waved lightly, but she was looking down. His hand dropped limply to the table and he looked and Angel who was still staring at her face.

"And last but not least here is Bobby Mercer." Evelyn smiled.

Arlyn actually looked up at Bobby. She seemed to recognize his name and looked him in the eye. That's when he noticed the color of her eyes. They were a surprising dark blue and held some of the deadness his mother had mentioned.

Jack walked back into the room, and Arlyn turned her attention towards him. "Oi…" She reached into her pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. "Found it."

Jack took the paper and said, "Thanks. Never could find the place."

She gave him a nod, but then she tilted her head towards the kitchen. He nodded this time, and, without another word, she walked quickly into the next room. Jack slid the paper into his own pocket and started to follow her when Bobby stood up and asked, "Where's she going?"

They all heard a car door slam followed by the screen door in the kitchen opening and closing. Evelyn gasped a little and rushed into the kitchen. Jerry rose and pushed past Jack with Bobby. Jack only rolled his eyes and sauntered after them. Feeling left out, Angel grabbed a piece of toast and followed the group.

"What's going on? What are we looking at?"

Evelyn was standing at the screen door fidgeting with the doorknob, unsure about whether she should follow Arlyn. Bobby and Jerry were leaning over the sink to look out the small window, and Jack was just lurking like usual.

"Who is that?"

Evelyn pointed at the car Arlyn was currently rushing towards. It was a small four door car with a bad red paint job. A man was grabbing something out of the backseat when the teenage girl slid up beside him. He jumped and she laughed. A young blonde woman got out of the passenger seat, but Arlyn wasn't paying attention to her. She hugged the man.

"Jack, where's she going?" Evelyn looked almost accusingly at Jack, but he almost laughed to himself.

"She's not going anywhere." He hopped onto the countertop and glanced outside.

"I'll say she's not going anywhere…" Bobby moved to go outside, but Jack interrupted him.

"No, no. That's just Louis."

"Louis-?"

"Louis Rivera. Her social." Evelyn looked a little relieved. "He shows up all the time, a least for awhile."

Jerry faced Jack and eyed him. "How do you know so much about this girl? She ain't exactly friendly."

"She was at Central when I was... and juvie."

Bobby raised his eyebrows and muttered to Jerry, "The fairy was in juvie?"

Jerry shrugged, and Evelyn took one last glance outside before announcing, "Come on, let's all go back in the other room. They'll think we're staring."

"We are."

She pushed Angel back into the other room, and the other three boys soon followed. They all sat down and waited for what seemed like twenty minutes.

"Ok, this is so not working for me. I'm out." Angel hopped out of his chair.

Evelyn looked up at him sternly. "Angel, sit. Now."

"Mom, come on! She's weird, I got it. She doesn't want to be here and at the moment neither do I."

Jerry tried to silently tell his brother to sit his ass down, but he wasn't getting the message. Evelyn rose. "Angel! You do not know where that girl has been. Of course she's not a bag of smiles right now. She will be living in this house, and you will be polite. Now, sit down right now."

Angel sat, but continued, "Did you see her eyes?"

Bobby glared at his brother. "Yeah, they're blue."

"No, no, man. She looks at you funny. It's like-"

"Is this a fucking JOKE?!?!?"

They all turned as the screen door burst open, and Arlyn stalked into the house. She was followed by a short, middle-aged, Hispanic man in a heavy brown coat. His dark hair was thinning, and he carried a large briefcase in one hand and a stack of manila folders in the other. Louis shook a little snow off his jacket and rolled his eyes.

"Language."

She ignored his comment and started pacing briskly around him. He looked at her calmly as he done a million times before, but she started muttering under her breath, aware of the fact that everyone was listening to her.

"It took them how long to show up last night? Then they ship Ashley off right away and stick me with those incompetent ass wipes for a couple hours. Then, I get sent off with Grandma Cookie-Cutter, and now you send me THAT!!" She pointed at the blonde woman who was slipping her way up the stairs.

She proceeded to go on muttering in fragments of angry Spanish, but Louis sighed and walked past her into the dining room. "Mrs. Mercer. It's good to finally meet you. My name is Louis Rivera."

Evelyn jumped forward to shake his hand and smiled. "Pleasure…"

Bobby watched as Arlyn continued to fume in the kitchen. He noticed that she wasn't limping or wincing. She actually didn't seem to be in much pain at all. She certainly wasn't self-conscious about her injuries either and had made no attempt to cover them. Her hair was pulled back, and she wore nothing over t-shirt. When she saw the blonde woman enter the kitchen, she stomped into the dining room.

Without turning around, Louis said, "Be nice."

She glared at his back and said, "You shouldn't have brought her. I don't like newbies."

"Wasn't my choice. Sit." He turned to face her. "Now."

She slowly walked around the table and sat next to Jack. Louis smiled and said, "Hello Jack; you doing good?"

Jack nodded and Arlyn just glared. The blonde woman timidly hovered up behind Louis.

"Ah, this is my colleague Calissa Conroy. Calissa, this is Mrs. Mercer. She-"

Quite the eager-beaver, the suddenly brave blonde leaned across her superior and grabbed the older woman's hand. "It's so nice to meet you. You've really got quite the reputation, Mrs. Mercer. What you do is so generous and..."

Mrs. Mercer smiled understandingly, but eventually she was forced to yank her hand back from the rambling blonde. Jack chuckled lightly under his breath, and Arlyn never wavered from her cold glare at Louis as he continued.

"Yes, well, down to business." He dumped the manilla folders onto the table with a loud _thump_, and pulled out a chair for himself. He turned his tattered briefcase towards him and popped the clasps open, lifting the lid. "Before we-"

It was then that Louis looked up and took notice of just how many people were actually at the table. His gaze swept quickly down the line before turning back to Mrs. Mercer questioningly.

She smiled and sat up straighter. "I don't keep anything from anyone in this family." She reached for Bobby's hand, and he gently squeazed back.

Louis turned back to Arlyn, his hands still frozen over the contents of the briefcase. He looked at her intently, and she calmly stared back although she had taken to strumming her fingers along the table. They sat there for at least a minute, and tension built in the air. No one moved, but Angel and Jerry glanced at each other across the table. Calissa looked between the two, trying to understand.

Just when Bobby was seriously considering throwing a fork down the table to break the silence, Arlyn plastered on a fake smile, tilted her head, and cheerily muttered, "The more the merrier."

She was apparently planning on completely ignoring Calissa's prescence as she had yet to acknowledge that she was in the room, but the blonde laughed nervously and began fidgetting with her hands.

Louis held their gaze for a minute longer before he turned back to Mrs. Mercer. "First off, we can't thank you enough for showing up so late last night, ma'am."

"Oh, it was nothing; I-"

"It really wasn't nothing, ma'am. Given Arlyn's background and the gravity of last night's situation, I'm shocked that she's not still down at the station. The situation wasn't handled well by anyone but you. She won't thank you, but I certainly will."

Modestly smiling now, she said, "I do what I can."

Bobby glanced over at Arlyn and observed that she was now looking down at the table where her right hand was twitching. Some of her hair had fallen into her face, obscuring her expression.

Louis went on, grabbing a pen and a few documents out of his briefcase. "Indeed. I would have been there last night, but I wasn't informed of the.. incident until this morning. Given the gravity of it all, we can't expect you to do more than you signed on for. As I said, we're more than grateful that you've offered to look after her on such short notice, but we have been able to produce some more permanent arrangements."

Bobby was still watching Arlyn's fingers. At first her hand just seemed to be twitching or shivering, but now it was apparent that it was playing some sort of invisible piano. They moved in deliberate movements, and she only stared blankly while her other hand rolled the apple back and forth. 1-2-3...1-2-3...

"Permanent-?"

"Yes, Garrison's is prepared to take her in as of Friday."

The piano playing stopped, and the apple ceased rolling. Jack turned to Arlyn; she had tensed up, but never looked up. She seemed frozen. Bobby wasn't even really sure she was breathing anymore. _Who could blame her though?_

Most kids prayed for juvie over Garrison's when they went to court. Bobby had narrowly missed a second trip there when her was 17 by taking an obsene amount of community service and counseling. Picking up trash and scrubbing mold out of vents for a year was nothing compared to what Garrison's had thrown his way, and from what her heard, it had only gotten worse. It was the last resort when they just didn't have much hope for you anymore. It was run harder and tighter than most jails, and it made bootcamp or prison sound like heaven for most kids. No one came out unscathed, and none were ever "rehabilitated" as was supposedly intended.

Louis seemed severley uncomfortable, fidgetting with the papers in front of him. He was purposely not looking at Jack or Arlyn, and Jerry detected even a hint of guilt in his voice. Mrs. Mercer was beyond shocked at what she was hearing.

"Why on earth would you send her there?" Her voice was barely above a whisper and strained with anger and shock. "Are you cr-?"

"The situation is complicated." Louis closed his case again and lightly banged the palms of his hands against the table. "It's our last resort, and it was likely that she would be returning there shortly."

"Returning?" Mrs. Mercer was thoroughly puzzled now. How on earth was she to understand how this waif of a girl was not only headed towards that awful place but was apparently a repeat visitor?!?

_What the fuck did she do? _Angel thought.

Louis ignored the question and continued. "Arlyn has some pending charges against her now. In addition to violating her last court sentence regarding school attendance, she has managed to be involved in an assault case. It's fairly serious, and this might be the last straw with the judge. All previous foster homes and facilities have made it.. clear that they are incapable of fitting her into the system at this time. Garrison's is an unfortuate, but perhaps, inevitable solution."

Mrs. Mercer put a hand to her mouth and closed her eyes. This was bad, very very bad. _I've never given up on a child before. Never. But how can I...?_

She was pulled out of her thoughts when Bobby reached over and patted her hand. She opened her eyes, and a scratching sound came to her. Looking up the table, they noticed that Arlyn had apparently scratched through the plastic table cloth and scraped the wood with her nails. Her right hand now formed a fist, and it was really shaking. Her fist released and clenched again before disappearing under the table. Jack leaned forward and hesitantly grabbed her shoulder.

Calissa at this point looked at Arlyn as if she were some sort of animal about to leap across the table to rip her splean out. Louis finally manned up and looked at the teenager.

Her body was hunched forward and leaning harshly to the right, her eyes closed. When they opened, Louis resisted the urge to look away. _Chandler can manipulate and fuck with you to hell and back, but it's really when she's genuine that she kills you. This hurt. He knew what Garrison's meant to her. Hell, he'd been in the goddamn courtroom trying to get her out, but what else was there...?_

"You said... you promised-" Arlyn's voice was strained and weak. It cracked and she couldn't finish the sentence.

At some point she'd pulled her hair loose. It fell messily around her face, and while it normally made Louis notice how fair she really was, now it only brought out how bruised her face was. Part of the huge gash across her face was covered. _Must be where-_

"Don't-" Arlyn's whisper was cut off by Mrs. Mercer's clear voice.

"That won't be necessary, Mr. Ruiz." She was sitting up straight now with her hands folded in front of her. Any of the boys at the table could have told you that she meant business. Bobby closed his eyes, and Jerry leaned back in his chair. Angel was beyond uncomfortable at this point, but he was hardly surprised when his mother spoke.

Arlyn, Louis, and Calissa all spun sharply to stare at the kindly older woman. Calissa's mouth was wide open, and Louis was trying to assess the situation. "Mrs. Mercer, I'm not sure that you understand the-"

"I understand." Her voice was unwavering. She opened her hands and never looked away from Arlyn. "You're welcome to stay here, Arlyn. For as long as you want."

For the first time, Mrs. Mercer saw something behind those startling eyes. There was surprise and more than a little apprehention, but there was a sense of gratefulness coming out. The last thing she saw was a wave of sadness rush forward before the walls came crashing back down.

Arlyn looked down again and leaned back into her chair. Jack's hand was still on her shoulder, and she fiddled with something under the table for a moment. With a quick glance at Louis she said, with her normal voice, "Well, I guess that takes care of your problem now doesn't it?"

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**A/N:** I am so so so so sorry that this took so long. I've just been having all sorts of issues, including a prolonged state of laziness. Senioritis maybe? Anyways, there it was. I think it's pretty long, so maybe that makes up for it...

I can't promise the next chapter will be up right away, but I do know that it will be lighter, and humor will rear its happy head again.

Thank you all so much for your reviews. It means a lot, and it's a total ego-boost.

Ophelia, you're reviews kick so much ass and totally brighten my day. Princess, I hope I didn't disappoint. I hope you liked it Rogue, and Feeling, that is a totally cool compliment that I'm not sure I deserve. :)

Thanks so much & stick around!


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